Today, Adobe has announced its Rising Stars program, which aims to highlight the work and stories of 10 up-and-coming photographers from across the world. Fstoppers has an exclusive first look at the program and its artists.
These ten photographers range in age from 14 to 36 and cover a wide range of work from wildlife to the LBGT community in Uganda. Check out their work below, and be sure to follow the Lightroom Instagram in the coming weeks to see more. Says Lex van den Berghe from Adobe:
When it comes to pursuing a creative passion, the path is rarely straight nor narrow. In fact, one of the things I love most about the creative community, especially in photography, is that peoples’ diverse backgrounds and journeys always create unique perspectives. This is exactly what we had in mind when searching for our Adobe Rising Stars.
Andile Buka (Age 27, South Africa)
Self-taught, Buka left a successful 9-5 job to pursue photography, using his passion for bicycling to meet and connect with people.
Adriana Loureiro Fernandez (Age 28, Venezuela)
Fernandez began exploring photography in high school, eventually becoming a freelancer for news outlets, where her strong documentary skills have come to the forefront.
Tarryn Hatchett (Age 29, South Africa)
Hatchett initially studied acting before gravitating toward photography because of the additional control over the creative process it offered. Her love of cinema is clear in her work and translates to strong portraiture.
Sofi Lundin (Age 36, Sweden, Based in Uganda)
Lundin's photojournalistic and humanitarian work show an intimate connection to those she photographs, lending a strong storytelling ability to her work, which ranges from refugees in South Sudan to the LGBT community in Uganda.
Andrew Nowacki (Age 19, Canada)
Photographically nurtured by his father as a child, Nowacki's work shows a strong sense of the interplay of light and dark and of portraying minimalism. He combines photography and music by participating in a Montreal-based art collective.
Ivana Pejak (Age 20, Serbia)
Pejaj's work combines portraiture and street photography with a strong sense of composition and visual interest. Her studies of cinematography contribute strongly to her work.
Ben Ruef (Age 14, United States)
Though only 14, Ruef already shows strong skills, starting in skateboarding photography before continuing onto wildlife, landscapes, and time-lapses.
Ashleigh Scully (Age 15, United States)
Using wildlife photography to bring attention to conservation, Scully donates a lot of her images to such groups. She aims to provide an emotional connection between viewers and her subjects to promote greater empathy and awareness.
Iggy Smalls (Age 25, Norway, Based in Spain)
Coming from a long line of photography enthusiasts, Smalls began shooting at 10. She is currently a freelancer, where she enjoys "slow news" photography.
Zoë Urness (Age 33, United States)
Urness, a Tlingit Alaskan Native, focuses her work on Indigenous Americans and their lives, using powerful documentary portraiture to create her images.
It's pretty great to see so much ability and creativity from around the world. Be sure to follow the Lightroom Instagram to see the work of these talented, young photographers!
A lot of young women in the list. It looks like Fstoppers efforts to highlight the disparity are paying off! ;-)
Of course I'm kidding. It's definitely a worthwhile cause for an age group that generally doesn't appreciate the art of photography.